548 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [Fbb. 2, 1903. 
SIX MONTHS ENDING 3CTH JliNE 
Auditor 
Printing, etc. Book of Proceedings ... 
Miecellaneous (Cycloatyle services) ... 
Ceylou Associntion in London 
Secretariat and Management, A Philip 
& Co., Oontribntion to Oflfioe Ex- 
penses ... 
Peons' Services 
Postages, Peities, &c. 
Charges 
Printing, Advertising, &o. (Capper & 
S.ns) 
Secre ariat and Management Secretary 
Stationery Account 
Telegrams .. .. 
1982. 
E65 00c. 
6!i7 80 
300 00 
450 00 
1,600 00 
168 00 
217 05 
107 50 
132 12 
1,500 00 
315 74 
71 44 
K5,494 65 
SIX MONTHS ENDING 31ST DECEMBER, 1902. 
Auditor 
Miscellaneous as under :' 
Mr Kingsford 
Mr Philip 
Walker's 
Cyclostyle 
Messrs A Philip & Co. 
Peons' Services, 
Fostaees, Patties &c. 
Charges as under ; — 
Cheque books 
Coolies 
Brown and Davidson 
Baiiway Freight 
Printing advertising, &o. asunder:— 
Capper & Sons R 46 43 
Apothecaries Co., Limited 105*85 
Ceylon Independent ,.. 
H W Cave & Ci. 
Eandy Industrial School . . 
Secretary 
E250-00 
125.00 
15-00 
, 30000 
R 10-00 
. 10.5-00 
, 102 60 
1-10 
60-25 
3305 
17 12 
First six Months in 1902 R5,494 65 
Second do do 4 605-35 
R 6500 
690 00 
,600 00 
16300 
10105 
218-60 
262 70 
. 1,50000 
R4,505-33 
R10.(0000 
St. -Louis-Bxhibition RlOl-40— being cost of Tele- 
grams to AJr Figg. 
GREEN TEA AND PATENTS. 
Writing under date, 7ili January, Mr Drum- 
mond-Deane mentions :— " My Ceylon patent for 
the Penne-Judge Strainer hang.s fire owing to the 
usual red-tupe, ihouph it l as been g'anied long 
ago for India. I am of opinion that the 'Thirty 
Committee' bonus on green teas should be on a 
sliding scale ; otherwise, as black teas rise 
in value, greens will fall back. I suggest as 
worthy of consideration that with black tea 
average 8d or over, the green tea botius should be 
not less than Scents which, with such an average, 
the black tea producers can well afford and that 
for every farthing fall (or fraction of a farthing) 
there should he ^ a cent reduction down to 6d 
average, where it should remain at 4 cents. Some- 
thing on these lines is wanted if jou don't 
want to nip I lie gi een lea indUKiry in l lie bnd. 
We shall shortly have a Ueane-Jiidge Finishing 
and I'an-Hring Machine for the dylon public." 
Mr. Di unimond-Dciaie will see that we cannot 
go on even at 4 cents and iliat there are many 
wh.> think green tea could stand by itself, so good 
have been the prices paid at Colombo sales lately. 
What docB our correspondent think of 36 cents 
for low-country greens apart from bonus ? But the 
quf!s(ion is nnw portine'it'y asked as to whetlier 
the fostering of a neio industry is not peculiarly 
the duty of the Guveruuient. 
TEA CULTIVATION IN THE CAUCASUS 
ASIATIC RUSSIA. 
Wil h referenee to i lie notics on pp. 368-9 of the 
Boar l of Trade Journal for loth November, 1900, 
H M Coii-ul at Batouni, in his receni report, states 
that the cultivation of the teaplantin the Southern 
Trans-Caucasus, and principally in the vicinity of 
£ itoum, is making areat strides. It is on'y some 
nine years since the first attempts in the culture 
of tea were madt on the coast of the Black Sea by 
a Russian gentleman, and his undertaking was 
then looked upon most sceptically by the majority 
of the agricultural people in tlie disrrict. Since 
then it has, however, become evident that tea can 
be cultivated to advantatte, and several other per- 
sons in the district also began to grow tea on their 
estates, among them the managers ot the Imperial 
Domains, who now have .500 to 600 acres under tea. 
During the present year the tea crop surpassed 
all expectations, 1 dessiatine (2-7 acres) having, 
on an average, yielded 20 pouds, or 800 Russian 
lb (7'20 lb avoir, weight/, which, at the rate of 1 
roulile per )>oud, the a l-rnund wholesale price at 
which it has been sold, has brought in 800 roubles 
perdessiatine; or, as near as possible, .SOi! per acre. 
Owing to t he satisfactory results obi aine'l dur- 
ing the period, U'ider review, the Russian Minis- 
try ol Agriculture, it is understood, is about to 
adopt a series ot measures in order to encourage 
and foster the cultivation of tea by the small pea- 
sant classes, and books containing instructions 
and explaaations with regard to the industry, are 
being widely circulated among the farmers of the 
locality in which the tea is grown. 
Under the conditions set forth above, the theory 
that tea growing in the Caucasus would not bo 
generally f-dopted on account of the unfavourable 
climatic conditions and other diffii-nliies which 
have to be encountered, including the high rate of 
wage paid for labour, or that the tea industry and 
trade of the Caucasus could not possibly expand 
to a .stage which would render it, even at a remote 
date, of commercial importance, is app <rently an 
exploded idea. The results obtained during this 
season show that quite the contrary is likely to 
be the case, and that theie is every reason t » be- 
lieve that the cultivation and manufacture of tea 
promises to be one of the most piosperous and 
profitable agricultural pursuits in the Trans-Cau- 
casus. — Board of Trade Journal, Dec. 24. 
TEA TRADE CHARGES. 
The recent regrettable failure of an old and honour- 
able City firm of tea merchants, who attributed their 
Ids es shitfly to the changing conditions of their 
basiuess, has directed attention to the almost com- 
plete revolution that hns taken place in the tea 
trnde of late years. So far as the rettiil buyers are 
concerned, it has come about so silently and gantly 
tl at they have fallen iu with it, quite uncoi'Scioua 
that any trauBformations were ptoceeding. They are 
vnguely aware that China tea has to «ll intents »nd 
pui poses passed out of their gioter's shop, and they 
are learning thnt tea should be ^mnk when freshly 
made. Price remains iheir chief stHuHarfl of com- 
parison, and the average householder feele she has 
acted rightly when she ordeia a quantity at 2b. a 
